Return from Afar
by Tortoro15
Summary: Being kidnapped and held in a ship for years isn't an easy thing to recover from, even though he's returned. Ben must beat the odds by returning to normal and being the hero he once was.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1: Mysterious Disappearance**

Constant ringing interrupted her studying. She groaned and picked up her phone, mustering a tone of annoyance at the other end. If she failed her test, she was so blaming whoever was calling her."Hello?"

"_Gwen is that you?_" A voice asked with worry.

She frowned, "Yes it is.. who is this? Ben?"

"_Ben.. you must come right away to Bellwood. There are terrible news!_" It quickly said.

"First I want to know who this is? What happened to Ben?" She furthered.

"_I apologize but there is not enough time to explain everything. Just bring yourself and Mr. Levin to Plumber Base immediately. Magister Tennyson will explain everything there. Hurry_," The voice said and quickly hung up.

She froze at the dead line and shut her text book. What was happening to Ben? Where was Ben? Grabbing her phone again, she dialed Kevin's number and waited for him to pick up.

"_Hello?_"

"Kevin, pick me up now. We've got an emergency."

* * *

"When are they arriving?" Rook asked, tapping his foot impatiently.

Max sighed and scratched his head, "They should be here by now.. I wonder what's taking them so long."

"Grandpa Max?" Gwen yelled out, rushing to her worried grandpa. She wore a stressed expression and gave him a sad look, "What's happening? Where's Ben?"

"Who's he?" Kevin interrupted, pointing over to the Revonnahgander.

"That's Ben's new partner. He was the one that called you earlier on the phone," He shrugged off and sighed, "Ben's been kidnapped. We're not sure who took him but he's not home and we can't call him. We've tried to use his omnitrix to find him but nothing.. he's been missing for 3 days."

"3 days?! Why didn't you call me earlier?" She exclaimed.

Rook crossed his arms, "We had thought we had caught a lead on his whereabouts but unfortunately it was a false lead. That is when Magister Tennyson had recommended we contact you for assistance. You are an anodite correct? You can track his mana?"

"Y-Yeah," She stuttered, "But.. I tried that in the car. I couldn't locate his mana anywhere on earth. It's just.. gone."

Her grandpa put a hand on his forehead, trying to think of a plan to rescue his grandson. "Who could have taken him? Why would they need him?"

"It's Ben. Everyone always wants revenge on him.. unless he's..," Gwen whispered in horror, eyes widening. She backed up into Kevin and buried her head into his chest supportively.

"Let's not think about that. He can't be dead. He's not dead," He disagreed and turned over to Rook. "Weren't you watching him?"

The Revonnahgander shook his head, "I.. We had finished out patrol around Undertown. I had dropped him home and returned to my place. I had not contacted him the next morning because the day before he had said he would not be reporting to Plumber Base because he wanted to have the time of the families with his parents."

"Family time," Kevin corrected.

"And that was the last I had heard of him. When I went to investigate over at his house but when I had asked his parents on his location, they had assumed he had left towards Plumber Base. He had never arrived," He muttered, looking away. "It is my fault. If I had visited him the day before, he would not be missing."

Gwen sighed, "Don't blame yourself. We just gotta find him. Any leads? Can you trace any ships leaving earth?"

"I've tried already Gwen. We've found nothing. Ben's gone," Max shook his head.

"Ben's somewhere. He's to valuable to just kill you know," Kevin said, trying to state a point.

"We'll find him. Ben's too good to be missing this long."

* * *

_**2 years**** later..**_

"Get them out of here now! I will search for others," Rook yelled out to his crew. They nodded back at him and vanished into the fires. A loud blast from above his personnel and he rushed forwards, towards an area which didn't seem to get affected by the fires around the ship.

His crew and himself had been assigned to board the ship, which had been known to be one of the ships that kidnapped exotic aliens from their planets. There had been a large amount of kidnapped aliens, around 100, each locked up in a cell. They all looked skinny from the lack of food they received and utterly weak. They thankfully had broken into the ship and arrested the main crew controlling the ship. Until one of those fools had started the self destruction count down and forced the ship to explode.

He gasped out the smoke filling up his lungs and continuing running, looking for anymore aliens locked up. He had nearly passed by a cell, which contained a dark figure lying in the corner. For a split second, he had assumed it was dead, by the way it's chest never rose but he heard faint breathing inside.

"Hello?" He said quickly, knocking on the cell door. "Are you alright? We are here to help!"

The figure didn't answer but moved it's head towards the source of the sound.

"I am going to open the door," He informed and stuck out his Proto-Tool, which was charged up with electricity, and stabbed it into the control panel beside it.

The door opened with a beep and he smiled. Walking in, he could smell the scent of the putrid cell and wrinkled his nose in disgust. Clicking a button, the mask which created fresh oxygen covered his face, so that he could think properly. He bent down towards the alien and picked it up, not bothering to closely inspect the person he carried. He could hear more explosions from behind him and he darted out, towards the opposite way he had come.

"I have found another alien in the cell. I am running towards the opposite end of the ship," He yelled into his speaker, taking gasping breaths.

"Noted, prepared to board," Someone called back.

A ship appeared, it's opening already wide enough to fit the both of them. He jumped into the hanger, holding his victim tightly against his chest. A loud explosion pushed the ship back; everyone being spun around like a toy. As soon as the explosion ceased, the hanger fully closed and everyone sighed in relief.

"Who did you find?" Someone asked, walking up beside him. He was a wolf like alien, named Adam.

Rook allowed himself to release his victim and got up. "I am not sure. But I am sure he was the last one on board."

"...Rook. You.. You found Tennyson!" Adam said wide eyed.

Freezing, he glanced down at his feet, utterly shocked at what he was met with.

It was a skinny version of his partner but it was him alright. The familiar shaggy brown hair. The familiar face features. The beaten up omnitrix that was clearly printed on his wrist. This was Ben alright. But it seemed far from it. The boy looked white as a sheet, clearly shaking in fear and probably from how cold it was in the ship. His clothes were torn in several places and he was instead wearing his old brown pants, which had several rips and a grey shirt, which was oversized on his body.

"Ben," He whispered in shock. He had forgotten about his long lost partner. It had been 2 years since he had last saw him. They had gave up his search a year ago, everything pointing to his death. They couldn't locate him and nobody had last saw him.

He picked up the boy slightly but he remained unresponsive. He put his ear to his chest and was horrified at how cold and slow his heart was going, "We need medical attention stat!"

The medics assigned with their group, carefully picked up the boy and carried him to a nearby bed, hurrying to prep him up for IVs.

Rook glanced sadly at Ben's deathly looking form and put a hand to his face, "I must alert Magister Tennyson."

He hurried to a silent part of the ship, where he knew he wouldn't interrupted. Looking through his contacts in his Plumber Badge, he pressed on Magister Tennyson's number and waited for him to pick up.

"_Rook? What's wrong?_" Max asked.

"We found something when we boarded the alien ship. But I am not sure how you will react," He mumbled, glancing over to the end of the hallway.

"What is it?"

"We found.. We found Ben."

The phone remained silence for the longest of time before fake chuckling was heard, "Good one Rook. You must of taken a hit to the noggin."

"I am serious. We have found Ben. But he is not in the greatest conditions. He is severely thin from starvation and he has a very slow heartbeat. The medics are on him, trying their best to help," He informed softly. "I.. Are you alright?"

"..Fine. When are you arriving?" He asked.

"In about an hour," Rook said.

"Okay. See you then," The line died abruptly.

He lowered his badge and deposited it back into his pocket, reaching the medic bay. He found Ben once again in the same position but his clothes taken off, so that it showed his bear chest and legs, but the boxer still in place. Pulling up a chair, he watched them perform tasks around his body, injecting him with many syringes and using AEDs to assist him.

Rook stared, petrified at how many bruises littered his body, along with many blood dried cuts. He could still remember how young and innocent Ben was, always getting his way like he knew what was coming. After his disappearance, everything joyful ceased, always a constant reminder about Ben. Gwen and Kevin had stopped visiting and after finishing her degrees, decided to stay around campus with him. Max had become more demanding overtime, becoming stricter than his usual teaching skills. His parents had been hit the hardest with the loss; they had planned a funeral for Ben, which many millions had attended physically or through the television. It was one of the biggest events in history. And after it, had went through his belongings and decorated the house with his clothes, posters and medals over the years from being a hero. It had been a sad couple of months..

From then, he had been getting tougher. He had been working harder at Plumber Base that it had taken notice on everyone, including Magister Tennyson. But what had shattered it was when he had personally asked Rook if he wanted a partner.

Rook had spat that back in his face, saying he never wanted to replace his first fun partner of some stupid knock off. He didn't care if Max had forced him, it would of never happened. That's when he was assigned a team to order around, taking them on many missions, each one coming out victorious.

He didn't dare chose another partner; not only did it seem rude but it was like he wanted to forget about Ben if he had agreed; and he honestly didn't want to. He had learned so much from him.. human grammar, how to think out of the box and all the fun stories he used to share. He had promised himself never to eat chili fries or smoothies without Ben beside him again; it was only fair to keep a sacrifice for his missing partner.

He lost track of time eventually, Ben already making significant improvement. He had been given vitamins, which would boost everything needed in his body until he was at full strength. The doctors had quickly said, when arriving on earth, Ben would need much food in his system. He needed fat, salt, sugar, everything to push him back to normal.

When they had left, Ben was wrapped up in new clothes, a black shirt and a pair of used sweatpants from a nearby donor. His skin color was returning to a tannish color and now Rook was able to see his chest rise and fall with rhythm. He laid back in his seat, not knowing he had been tense when he was examining Ben.

The ship halted and the voice of the ship's captain brought him back. He glanced over to Ben and then the medics coming to assist him inside. He knew he couldn't do anything but see Magister Tennyson, who was no doubt waiting outside for either Rook or Ben.

As he slipped out of the ship's cargo bay, he found many Plumbers haling weapons inside, gossiping with other comrades, or just grabbing their vehicles and leaving for today. It was like ants around an ant farm when you accidentally stepped over their home.

He found Max standing alone in the middle of all the confusion, waiting patiently for someone to come to him. He saluted, "The mission was a success; we managed to save all the aliens that had been trapped inside and we have arrested some of the crooks running the business. And we found Ben. At the last minute. If I had not looked towards his way, his shadow, he would not be here thankfully."

"How's Ben?" He asked softly, glancing at the cargo bay.

"He was severely weak when I had grabbed him but he is making slow but rapid recovery," Rook smiled, "But he needs many vitamins and proteins to get him back to normal."

"Noted," His eyes turned towards the bay and watched as a stretcher was being rolled out. It was covered in a white sheet but you could easy pinpoint the brown hair falling out. Five medics surrounded him, telling others to get out of the way or holding the equipment necessary like IVs and heart monitors. One of them stopped, rushing to Rook and Max's side.

"Magister Tennyson! We're taking Ben Tennyson to the medical station upstairs for further examination. I'm afraid we don't know the full extent of the damages he's endured. You both are welcome to join us," He said quickly.

Max nodded, "We'll be right behind you. C'mon Rook."

They followed the medics back to their station, like a cat and mouse. Max watched carefully of the state of his grandson. He seemed alright but the IV's inside his arm didn't assure him so much.

As soon as they reached the station, they darted towards an empty room and quickly hooked him up to many various machines. Rook and Max watched as they did many activities, checking his vitals and his stability.

They finished in record time, analyzing everything and summing it up for both Plumbers to understand.

One doctor, named Dr. Hugele, went to both of them and glanced at his chart, "Ben's experienced malnutrition and severe dehydration. They didn't feed him so much on that ship and you were _very_ lucky to save him at that time. If you hadn't, Ben would have died in a couple minutes. Checking on his dietary systems, he hadn't ate since 3 days ago. He was very weak and near death. But with enough food, he'll regain weight and muscle."

Rook sighed, "Good to know. Anything else?"

"Yes. There's multiple bruises around his chest, probably from being beaten. But no internal bleeding. And we couldn't help but notice a small little feature that frighten us. There's a large cut around his omnitrix arm, as if someone had tried to cut if off. The cuts were pretty deep but healed okay. But some muscles are torn and I'm afraid Ben won't be able to use his wrist to the full extent. But other than that, he's fine," He finished. "I can recommend some surgery for his hand, if you'd like."

Max rubbed his forehead, "Okay, how long would it take?"

"Maybe 2 hours. We need to be very careful or any move could cut off the omnitrix," He nodded. "Would you like it as soon as possible, or do you have a specified date you'd like to perform it."

He glanced towards Rook, "I think now would be a good time. He won't feel it."

"Agreed. This would be a fast and painless way for Ben," He said with a sigh.

"Very well. We'll set up everything for the surgery. I recommend you leave for this and later someone will bring you in to see him," He scribbled things down on his clipboard.

Rook stood up and tugged on Max's arm, who was glancing over at his pale grandson, "Let us go Magister. He will be fine."

When they had left the room, Max released a great sigh and pulled out his cell phone, "I'd better contact everyone and tell them what happened. Thank you Rook. For everything."

"It is my job sir," Rook just said before leaving towards his truck.

On the way, many people stopped him, wanting to know if Ben was truly back. And he answered every single question with yes. He pushed his way towards the vehicle bay and spotted his truck a couple yards away. He unlocked it and threw himself into the back, clicking a button so that a roll out bed would appear. Laying on it, he put a hand to his forehead.

2 freaking years Ben had been trapped on that cursed ship, roaming around planet to planet collecting precious aliens. He had been put to the limit, with no food for days and being locked up in a cell. And the fact that someone had tried to cut off his omnitrix arm sickened him. He felt utterly stupid. How did he not think of that stupid ship first? It was known throughout the galaxy as an alien poacher ship.

But there were many more ships like that in different galaxies nearby. And it would just keep kidnapping poor aliens from their homes.. just like Ben had been abducted.

The families that felt grief and pain he could now relate too. Having someone plucked away from your life without any explanation was the worst kind of torture.

But at least Ben had returned. Maybe things would return to normal.

* * *

"Rook! Get up here now!" Someone yelled through his badge.

He jerked up and examined his surroundings, realizing that he had taken a nap on his cot. Grabbing his weapons, he rushed upstairs, careful not to bump into any fellow Plumbers on the way up. He had slammed into the medic doors and then towards a room where screams were heard. Bursting through the door, he held his weapon towards the threat: Ben.

Rook froze and lowered his weapon, "B-Ben?"

But Ben wasn't in human form; he was instead Diamondhead, holding up his diamond-pointy hands at Rook and Magister Tennyson. "Don't touch me!" He blasted towards Rook but he spun his weapon around, creating a shield. Throwing himself towards a nearby flipped table, he cowered.

"What is wrong with him?" He asked, glancing angrily at Max.

He shrugged, "He woke up and panicked at the sight of me. He turned into Diamondhead and started to attack me. But thank goodness you're here. I was running out of tables to help me."

Rook glanced up but quickly dived down, to avoid being shot by crystals. "I think I can do something."

Taking a large breath, he darted towards the side of the wall and Ben began shooting at him, missing every time. Rook jumped onto the wall and kicked Ben down, slamming his hand on the omnitrix.

The diamond creature flashed green and reverted back to human. Ben shook in fear and pushed himself back, "Don't hurt me please! I didn't do anything. I swear!"

He cocked his head in confusion, "Ben. We are not going to hurt you. It is me, your old partner, Rook. And your grandpa. Remember?"

"G-Grandpa? No it can't be!" He held his head and turned away, "I haven't seen him in forever. This is a dream.. a nightmare."

"Ben, please just calm down," Max whispered, "It's us. You're back home. Safe. Just calm down."

Ben took shuddering breaths, but was able to calm himself. Rubbing his eyes, he studied his partner and grandpa, trying to make sure they were truly as they were saying. "Y-You.. I'm home? I'm h-home." He threw himself at Max and started to sob, "I.. I missed you so much. I.. I never thought I'd escape that place."

"What did they do to you?" Rook furthered with curiosity.

Tears threatened to fall as he sighed, "They locked me up in my cell, barely feeding me. If I went out of turn, they whipped me. Then.. then they strapped me on a table and started to.. s-saw through me. They were trying to r-remove my omnitrix and failed when it was electrocuting them. It was useless to try so they gave up and t-they didn't even help me recover. T-They dumped me in my cell and continued to starve me. The pain.. everything was hurting so much after that. I f-felt so weak.. so lifeless. I knew I had an infection in my arm.. but it was then when they gave me medicine.. they did that just to put me on auction at a higher price.. If it wasn't for that.. I'd be dead already."

Max glanced over at Rook and then propped Ben on the bed. He kissed his forehead, "Nobody's going to touch you. I promise. I should be thankful to whoever sent you that medicine but I don't feel like being thankful. I feel like the captains did that on purpose. I've heard enough of those ships to know what they do to their victims."

"And what do you suppose they do? Lower their energy so they can just push them back up?" Rook asked with a frown.

"No, I think it was because they were trying to sell Ben. Think about it Rook. You've done research on those kind of ships. They were only created to poach rare creatures and then sell it off to high bidders. Ben must of gained a bidder but lost him because of how terrible shape he was," He informed, "They gave him that medicine, hoping it would heal him back to normal. People wouldn't want to kill their victims, since that doesn't make money to run the ship and for themselves."

The Revonnahgander nodded, "I get it. But why would only one bidder want Ben? Would there not be thousands.. no offense." He glanced over at Ben.

The teen shrugged and chuckled halfheartedly, "I don't care.. as long as I'm not in that stupid prison anymore.."

Max rubbed his chin, "It's probably because Ben was a very expensive person to buy. He's probably worth more than all the money on earth. And the only bidder that rejected him probably wanted him as a slave."

"Can we stop talking about me like I'm not here," Ben interrupted, his eyes glancing over at both of them.

"Of course," Rook smiled and ruffled his hair. The teen playfully pushed him away and smirked.

"I missed you to partner. I hope you didn't get another partner while I was gone," He narrowed his eyes, pointing at the alien's chest.

He put his hands up, half offended, "I would never have gotten a new partner. Though your grandpa had insisted that I do; I refused every single time. I could not be assigned a new partner, it felt wrong. And just so you know, I have not consumed chili fries and smoothies while you were away."

Ben grinned, "Good to know. Now you wanna go get one? I haven't had anything decent in.. How many years was I gone?"

"Two years, I am afraid."

"Well I haven't had anything good in two years. Let's go," He exclaimed, jumping from the hospital bed and rushing out the door. Before he could even cross, he was grabbed and pulled back. Rook gave him a skeptical look and pointed over towards his clothes.

"I do not think you want to be noticed again wearing hospital clothes," He shook his head.

"That's why it's called having a locker.. I wonder if it's still mine," He mumbled, scratching his head.

Rook sighed, "You are thankful I forced them not to touch your belongings."

"Okay, it seems like you're settling fine. I'll see you later right?" Max asked, hugging his grandson. He could smell the stench of sweat, blood and vomit around him and he crinkled his nose in disgust, "And you'd better take a shower before you go. You haven't had one in two years correct?"

Ben sniffled himself and rolled his eyes back, "Yeah, you're right. Shower first. Smoothies later." He went to the bathroom in his room, which luckily had a shower as well. He locked the door behind him and stripped, examining his body which he hadn't seen in forever. He could see scars littered around his body and the faint trace of incisions around his omnitrix. He fingered his chest slowly, which held the largest scar unfortunately.

Pulling his mind away from the dark memories threatening to return, he opened the water and stepped inside, groaning at the warm contact. He could feel all the grime fall down his body and into the drain.

He had forgotten how his life was here. He had always taken things for granite, like his family and friends.. and just bragging about being the greatest hero in the universe.. when he couldn't even save himself from a stupid poacher ship. He should of contacted someone.. anyone when he saw that mysterious ship pop out from the sky. But no.. he had ignored how dangerous it would be getting close to it, and instead went for it by himself. He had deserved it anyways; Grandpa Max always told him family was important, no matter what.

Ben finally understood what he meant now.. to a certain degree.

Finishing up, he found his old.. yet new clothes on the counter, slightly dusty but from when he had stored it in his locker two years ago.

Two years.. he couldn't believe he had been gone that long. It felt shorter than that..

How had everyone changed? Had they changed dramatically since the last time he saw everyone? What happened to his parents? Gwen and Kevin?

A knock interrupted his thoughts, "Ben, your grandfather has contacted all your family members. They will all be here soon to see you again. If you are hungry, I can help you to the cafeteria or we can get the smoothies you wanted earlier."

Ben grinned, "Smoothies dude."

* * *

As they had traveled together for drinks, his grandpa worked on getting everyone to one single location; his parents, Gwen and Kevin, and friends, ready to explain everything that had happened the last couple of hours.

When Max had called up his parents, they had started screaming and the line went dead in seconds. And it wasn't even 10 minutes later, that they arrived at Plumber HQ, knocking on the door desperately. When spotting Ben, who showed up 15 minutes after they had arrived, they had showered him with affection and refused to let go when he had began to get uncomfortable. But when Max had continued explaining that Ben had been abused with scars and bruises, they had began sobbing uncontrollably.

Gwen and Kevin had arrived an hour after, also being shocked that Ben was alive all this time. Kevin had swore if he ever saw a ship like Rook had described, he would murder the captains and burn down the ship without a second though. Gwen just had shaken her head at that ridiculous idea.

Many other friends had arrived as well, each of them having the same reaction when they laid eyes on Ben.

Ester had freaked out, hugging the teen as hard as she could. Ben could have swore he felt his ribs break against all the pressure.

Julie had also come, since she and Ben used to be close friends after they had broken up. She had cried at the thought of Ben missing and had literally taken Ship off into space, hopefully trying to find something that would lure them to Ben's location. Which had unfortunately proven a failure like all the scanners had said.

Many other Plumber kids Ben recognized came as well but stayed a distance away, so that his family and close friends could chatter with him.

Ben shifted nervously at all the stares everyone gave him. He remembered liking being the center of attention until he realized this wasn't because of how a great hero he was; it was instead that he was still alive after two years of his untraceable disappearance.

His eyes roamed around the room and he kicked his feet in the air, trying to pull his mind away from the current situation.

"Ben?"

He turned towards his cousin, who have him a confused look, "You alright?"

"Huh?" He rubbed his eye, "Yeah, I'm fine. I.. I'm just not used to all this attention.. it's been two years ya know."

She sighed, taking a seat beside him, "I'm sorry about what happened to you. We really tried to find you. I tracked you with my mana, tried my time travel spells.. I just couldn't do anything that would work and bring you back safe. We couldn't track you if we tried. We even asked Azmuth to help find you.. and he didn't get a single thing. You just disappeared from the universe."

Ben chuckled to himself, "Yeah.. I was just trapped in a ship for an unaccountable amount of time. It was terrible in there. I.. I heard all the screams from everyone when they grabbed new people. Some of them recognized me and hoped I'd break them out.. only to find out that I couldn't. They chained my omnitrix and I couldn't even touch it without getting electrocuted."

"What's what they did to you right? Your wrist?" She pointed over to the scar beside the watch.

He nodded solemnly, "They.. they chained me to a table and tried to cut it off me. They didn't use anything to help numb the pain. Just tie me up and cut me up like a animal. I screamed for so long, I couldn't hear anything anymore. T-Those people are sick. Monsters. They just want money and sell us off for profit. They.."

"Ben that's enough. You don't need to explain if you don't want too," She interrupted quickly, sensing how stressed her cousin was getting.

He choked on his words and nodded.

"We're all here for you Ben," Julie added, walking up to him with a supportive smile.

Ben forced a smile back and shrugged, "I know. Thanks."

She punched his shoulder lightly, "It's what friends do right? If you need anything just call me. I'll be here for you. That reminds me, I have to go. I told my dad I wouldn't break curfew."

"Okay," He waved, "See you later."

It had started after her departure when more people had decided to leave; not that Ben could blame them. Soon it was just his parents, his cousin and Kevin, Max and Rook left. Later his parents left, persuaded by Max that he still needed time to adjust before he walked out in the public again. They reluctantly left with Max, after many kisses from Sandra.

Ben rubbed his cheek tenderly, "I think I'm going to bed.. I haven't slept anywhere good in years."

"Ben, before you go," Gwen stopped him, "Since your back.. me and Kevin are going to move back here. We're going to be leaving tomorrow to pack all our stuff and come back. We promised ourselves we'd come back when you were found again."

He smiled, "Nice to know everyone kept a promise for me. At least nobody forgot about me."

"Nobody can forget about you Ben. You've saved so many people; you're a hero you know. Plus your family and my favorite cousin," She grinned and kissed his cheek, "See you tomorrow."

Ben nodded softly and watched as they left. Kevin gave him a small wink but he ignored it, not caring for what the adolescent was going to do.

The Revonnahgander watched from distance at how Ben was reacting. This boy acted like Ben but he seemed off; no doubt from the days in the prison ship. They had put him through many emotional stages, it was impossible not to act different. Ben had seen things that wasn't human, he was subjected to many tests.. it was just wrong to think about.

Ben had changed no doubt.. not positively though.

"Ben."

The teen glanced over to his partner, "Yeah?"

"I know whatever you experienced on that ship was.. horrifying.. but I just want you to know that you are safe. Nobody is going to take you again, that I swear. I will not let you go through that again," He promised softly, strolling over to the boy.

He sighed, "You don't understand do you? I can't forget what I saw. They.. I haven't told any of you this.. but they killed so many people trying to detach the watch from my wrist. Then they resorted to removing it the old fashion way. I.. I had been so caught up trying to remember how to take it off but it was already to late. They killed innocent people who had been captured longer than me. And.. they told me they'd let them go back home if I could just take it off. But I couldn't! I.. I couldn't save them.."

"It is alright, it's not you-"

"Don't say it wasn't my fault! It was my fault. I killed them all. If I could only remove it, they'd be alive with their families. It's not fair that I escaped and they had to lose their lives to just get a chance out," He sobbed, collapsing on Rook's shoulder. "It's all my fault. I could have saved them!"

He gently stroked the boy's back, trying to find a way that he would stop crying. But he just continued to be a sad mess, balling all over his partner. It was until he heard the boy let up slightly when he pushed him away gently.

"It is alright. Everything will be fine. I promise."

"That's what I'm afraid of."

* * *

**New story. I feel like this one's gonna be a keeper. Comments? Opinions? I'd like some feedback on how this story is rolling. Any criticisms good for me.**

**~Tortoro15**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: Pressure Points**

"How's Ben doing?" Max asked, approaching the nearby Plumber Agent. Rook jumped back and threw the food he carried into the air, quickly recovering and catching it. Noticing what he had done, he had added a quick apology.

"It is fine. And Ben is fine as well. He is still asleep in his room, though I was thinking about bringing him a real meal for breakfast. He has not eaten anything 'good' in a while," He explained, trying to shift around the food in his arms. It consisted of a couple of fruits, a pitcher of capped orange juice, freshly made pancakes and some syrup covered with a lid.

He raised a brow, "That's for Ben? You don't think you're going a bit overboard?"

"I am not jumping off a ship but I wanted Ben to be at the best shape. I think it is only fair to wake him with a proper meal in the morning," Rook waved up and glanced towards the food in his arms, "Now if you will excuse me, I must hurry back before this food gets cold."

Shrugging it off, Max walked away, leaving Rook to tend to the food he had collected for his partner. The trip to Ben's temporary room was a long distance away and he slowly felt his arms give away slowly. The ache killed him but he held himself, thinking about Ben's face when he found all the food when he awoke.

He soon arrived in the kitchen and laid the food across the table, sighing when he felt his arms relax from all the stress. He glanced at all the food and organized it, dividing it into fruits, pancakes and juice. He heard small rustling coming from the other room and he quickly rushed over to the TV, turning it on so it seemed that he hadn't set up the food moments ago.

Rook saw a flash of green and found Ben strolling over to the kitchen, eyeing the food and realizing that Rook was there awaiting him. "This is all for me?"

He nodded, "Of course. I was not sure on what you preferred so I guessed that pancakes would be a suitable dish for breakfast. Later on we can get smoothies, if you would like."

"Sure," Ben grinned and picked up the plate of pancakes, pouring syrup all over it and starting to devour it hungrily. He looked like a pig, the way he just ate the food without utensils for assistance. But he didn't say anything, not wanting to ruin any mood that the boy seemed to be in.

Afterwards, he joined the Revonnahgander for some friendly TV and glanced over at him, "I didn't know you could wear anything other than that Proto-Armor you always wear."

He chuckled at the boy's small humor, "Of course. I was not born with it unfortunately. Though that may have come in handy in the past."

Ben rolled his eyes, "On what? Defeating those rodents that steal your crops?"

"Indeed. I cannot believe you actually remember that."

"What? How could I forget? Missing for a couple years actually shows what you take for granted. Never forgot about you once partner," He replied sarcastically. "Actually never forgot everyone.. The only thing keeping me sane was thinking of you guys. If I ever got out, I'd never take you guys for granted again. I'd try to live up to my hero expectations.. though I don't think anyone needs a hero since I've been gone for so long."

"Ben, it has been a reckless couple of years without your presence. All the villains thought, after you disappeared, that we would be weak and defenseless against them. And it turns out, they were mostly right. We have been struggling without your help for years. We almost had to shut down the Plumbers because of the lack of equipment left. But that goodness you have returned. Everything will return to normal once everyone knows you have arrived again," Rook sighed.

Ben raised his brow, "Wow. Was I really _that_ important?"

"More than you know," He agreed sadly.

* * *

_"Wha-.. Gwen? Kevin?" Ben rubbed his head, groaning in pain. His eyes widened when the days events flashed through his mind. He shot up and went towards the door, pounding on it desperately, "Rook? Someone!?"_

_Not getting a response, he walked to the opposite end of the wall, trying to make sense of what happened. He had been kidnapped.. right? When? He moaned at the thought of trying to recollect his jumbled up memories. Collapsing on the floor, he crossed his arms with dissatisfaction. What bad luck. Nobody knew where he was.. _

_His watch! He glanced down at the familiar green glow on his watch and dialed his grandpa. "Grandpa? It's me Ben. I got kidnapped.. I think. I'm in this abandoned ship.. Can you tr-"_

_"Error. Omnitrix has reached unknown signal. Prepare to reconnect to server.. error, omnitrix unable to connect. Disabling omnitrix uses.. Disconnected."_

_Ben stared at horror at his watch, which miraculously shut down. He had no way to contact his family now.. and apparently it seemed that he couldn't even change to help himself. Way to go Azmuth._

_"Great," He muttered and released a loud sigh, "At least things can't get any worse."_

_And only to had to his bad luck, foreign aliens arrived, each equipped with a gun of their own. The cell door opened with a hiss and Ben automatically trailed back, not wanting to know the reason for their presence._

_"Benjamin Tennyson, you're wanted in sector 6 for processing," Someone noted, lifelessly._

_Ben wasn't able to tell who had said it but he honestly didn't care. 'Processing?' he asked himself with confusion but he couldn't think about it further until something cold snapped around his neck. His hands instinctively went to touch the collar but he couldn't even touch it until cuffs went around his wrists and ankle._

_"Huh?" He managed to say before they grabbed him harshly and started walking to their destination on another part of the ship. He honestly couldn't further why they wanted him and what they wanted to do to him. Ben could only wrap his mind around the other alien species they had bypassed there. Each one was exactly in the same condition as himself. They each wore a collar around their neck, metal looking and very thick. They each trembled in their cell, some huddled in groups for protection._

_Many eyed him with curiosity and some with fear. But at one time he saw an alien stare at him with pure shock, probably from the back that the famous Ben Tennyson had been captured the same as they did._

_The trip didn't take long and as soon as they arrived, they threw him in the center of the room, crowding around the exit as guards._

_Ben managed to pull himself up, sitting on his butt and glancing around pathetically. The room was entirely empty except for the guards in the corner. They didn't move a muscle and glanced at the ceiling as if they were forced to._

_"Benjamin Tennyson.. It's nice to see the galaxy's greatest hero in my presence," A voice mocked, appearing from the shadows._

_The teen whipped around, coming face to face with the mastermind of the ship. "W-Who are you? What do you want?"_

_"Does it matter what I want you for? If I called for you to arrive here, there must be a reason but I don't dare give away my secrets.. it's just not how I work," It shrugged. "And for the sake of my identity? I can address that at a later time."_

_"Why not now? What're you hiding?" Ben furthered, trying to hopefully waste time._

_"Nothing small.. though you won't like it at the end.. none of my subjects do," The figure said nonchalantly, moving over to a small red X on the ground. "That's partially why I stopped explaining everything to them. They never understood.. and because it gives me amusement."_

_He frowned, "Nice try. You don't scare me though. I've been in worse situations.. and just because my omnitrix doesn't work, doesn't mean I can't kick your butt."_

_When he heard the sinister laugh from the hooded figure, shivers ran down his spine and he felt his blood run cold. "As if I hadn't seen that coming. Benjamin, I love your wittiness but you should know that this.. isn't a battle you're able to achieve victory. I own you now; you're **my** property. And if that isn't enough to pursue you.."_

_Electricity traveled down his body and into the other parts of his body, earning a large scream from his throat. When the pain diminished he felt his throat go raw and itchy. He found himself, face against the cold floor and back in the air._

_"That's what will happen if you try to escape or try and continue to be the hero. You aren't the hero anymore. You're just a prisoner. Get used to it."_

_Ben tried to gather himself to get up but his energy was depleted. He felt like a ragdoll, completely at the alien's control and just dead to the world. He couldn't escape. He couldn't contact anyone. He couldn't save himself._

_"Get the table. It's time to pry that little weapon of his stupid wrist."_

_And that's when everything collapsed around him. A table appeared and he was soon set up against it, not bothering to fight. Well not like he could; his wrists, ankles, and neck were soon bounded to the table's metal cuffs and he was trapped helplessly. He couldn't move a single muscle.._

_His omnitrix stood brightly against his pale skin and the alien grinned, selecting a saw looking device from the table of surgical supplies. "This is going to be fun.. well not entirely for you."_

_He didn't even have time to look away before the saw dug into his wrist. Pain surged through his arm and into his body, filling it with unbearable coldness. Flashes covered his eye sight but he couldn't look away from what became of his arm. He could see all the blood.. staining his clothes.. the table.. even the saw.. It sickened him and he felt breakfast slowly make a reappearance in his throat._

_Ben couldn't even scream.. he didn't hear anything from his mouth.. so that probably meant bad news._

_Time went on buy and he still was continuing to stare at the mess of blood.. his wrist had gotten worse.. and he couldn't pass out.. until.._

_"Omnitrix breach. Preparing defenses."_

_Electricity burst out of the watch, aiming it for the alien who backed away. He shrieked and fell to the ground, glancing up at the cursed watch. Picking up the saw once again, he prepared to return to cutting it off when.._

_"Omnitrix breach. Preparing defenses."_

_He yelped again and dropped the device, staring with hatred at the omntrix. His eyes strolled to the boy's pain-filled face, who had tears leaking out of his eyes. "Tell me how to deactivate the defenses.. Now!" He hissed, grabbing the boy's restricted neck in a tight hold._

_Ben whimpered at the new touch and his eyes managed to open slightly, "I.. don't know.. please stop.. p-please."_

_The alien sighed and released his neck, turning to the bloody mess on the table. "I guess your price will be lowered.. since I can't get that stupid watch off. But you're still pretty high I guess.. You're lucky Tennyson. You get to keep that watch of yours.. but you've endured enough for today." He turned to the guards, "Clean him up and send him back to his room. We'll deal with him later."_

_Before the alien actually left, it turned back towards Ben and gave him a sick grin, "Oh and by the way.. the names Magent."_

_He left and as soon as the doors slammed shut, the guards went to his side and started cleaning off the blood, which was honestly pointless since more blood leaked out of his wound. He felt himself get light headed, probably from the blood loss and he just felt everything go by fast. They had bandaged his wrist, which was honestly just a bandage wrapped around it repeatedly. Blood continued to seep through it but at least it seemed slightly better._

_They carried him away on a guard's shoulder and he hung pathetically like a doll. He could only make out small shapes from the cells, some waiting his arrival and some backed away in the corner. He saw a couple aliens horrified, probably from the large bandage that had blood._

_He was soon throw into his cell, along with a spare blanket and pillow._

_"Night Tennyson. Don't let the bed bugs bite.. literally."_

_It was soon sealed shut, leaving Ben exactly the way he was an hour ago.. but with more knowledge on what was happening.. and a sore body. He couldn't even move to adjust himself on the floor, but instead accepted it and decided to take a peace filled slumber. Maybe he could escape this insanity just for a while.._

_His green eyes slid shut and he felt everything go black._

* * *

Ben jerked awake, grabbing his chest in pain. The memories from the ship when he had just arrived there.. he had stopped getting those memories a year after the incident. He hadn't gotten those memories since a year ago.. what had awoke it?

He jumped from bed and started the walk to the kitchen for a glass of water. Maybe that would calm him a little.

Cold shivers traveled up his spine as he tried to examine his state. His wrist throbbed.. wait throbbed? It hadn't done that in months.. What was happening to him? Had it been from coming back home from that cursed ship? Wasn't that suppose to be a good thing?

He poured himself a cup of water, gulping it down in record time before pouring another glass. He felt himself relax a little bit and he sighed thankfully. He didn't need a dream like that following him around all night.. he probably would forget in the morning anyways.

His green eyes eyed the clock and he stared wide eyed at the time, "3 pm?" He glanced towards his omntrix, which read the same time, "Why'd nobody wake me up?"

"Because no one wanted to bother you," Rook answered from a seat, closing a nearby newspaper. "We wanted to give you enough time to adapt again."

"Adapt? I'm fine. Honestly, you guys could have woken me up. I gotta be a Plumber again right?" He argued, knowing that he had won this argument.

The Revonnahgander rolled his eyes, "Yes of course, but we only wanted you to be used to.. this again. It is not good to rush you back into normality."

"Whatever," Ben waved off and touched his stomach lightly, "Can we eat something fulling? I haven't ate.. since forever."

"Agreed, I have not eaten lunch or breakfast as well. I have only been waiting for you to awaken before doing anything else," He agreed, rising from the recliner. "Where would you like to dine? Mr. Smoothy's or perhaps the Burger Shack would be good enough for lunch."

He shrugged, "Whatever you want, I just need to eat something!"

He nodded, "Let us go then. If I remember correctly, it takes precisely 8 minutes for our food to arrive."

"Race ya."

* * *

After hitting the Burger Shack, the Plumbers returned to base in Rook's Proto-TRUK. Ben had sighed, touching everything lightly, almost forgetting on how the vehicle looked before he had been kidnapped. That lead to the question of where his own car was located.

"It is in the garage in Plumber Base. We had found it beside the road and towed it back here. Magister Tennyson was not sure on what to do with it, so we decided to leave it here for safe keeping. It has been kept in vigorous condition by myself," Rook grinned proudly, patting his chest. He went inside HQ but instead of stopping at their usual parking spot, they went on a detour underground.

"Where are you going?"

"On earth, I know it is a secret to keep surprises hidden."

"Oh no. Rook..?"

They arrived at a circular garage, the doors pulled down and locked for protection. These were where the best tanks the Plumbers had were kept. Rook pulled out a pair of keys and handed it to Ben with a smirk, "Go ahead and see for yourself."

He shakily grabbed the keys and glanced down at them, finding a large red button which was new. Beside them were his keys.. "Rook?"

"Open it Ben-dude."

He pressed down on the button and watched as one of the garages acted, it's door being hoisted up. And Ben stared mouth gaped at his car, which was shining brightly inside. The normal dents in his car had been beaten out and his car had gotten a brand new paint job. The color was a faded green last time he had remembered..

"No way. You actually took care of it?"

"Of course I did," Rook nodded, "One, I had told you earlier, so this should not have come to a big surprise. And two, what are partners for? I had a little help from Kevin too."

Ben jumped on his partner, giving him a large hug, "Thanks! I haven't driven for.. two years! I wonder if I can still drive?!"

"It is best not to try it out at the moment. It is currently not filled with any gasoline.. but I shall retrieve some later. Now let us go upstairs. I believe your grandfather had something to tell you," Rook interrupted with a nervous chuckle.

The boy eyed him but sighed, mumbling an 'okay' and returning back to the truck. They took the same path to reach upstairs and stopped in their spot, both of them getting out and walking towards the Command Center.

When Max spotted both of the boys in the crowd, he grinned and beckoned them to hurry towards him. Ben rubbed his eye once they passed the large amount of Plumbers, "I didn't know we hired so many Plumbers."

"Funny you should talk about them. They mostly joined after you left. We got a large amount of aliens entering the Academy, mostly for the reason of protecting innocent souls like them. Just like you did before you went missing. They were so inspired by you, they joined to make sure you didn't go down in history as nothing but a hero," Max chuckled, "It's good to see you back."

"Good to be back," He agreed with an equal smile. "So what'd ya need us for?"

He glanced towards the screen, "We've got insite of the ships that kidnapped you. Apparently there's a command center where they control all the ships and what to retrieve from each galaxy they pass by. You apparently caught there eye at the worst time and that's why they caught you. They take days to capture their prey, striking when they're most likely alone."

"That makes sense on why they left no trails for us to find you. And probably being inside that ship cut off communications," Rook summed up, rubbing his neck.

"Yes and there are more than dozens of ships that travel around galaxies. Each one, grabbing important aliens like a zoo," Max shuddered. "There has to be millions of aliens still trapped inside. We got a count of the aliens you rescued to be 560 and all those cells weren't even filled up. We have to assume there's worse in those ships.. and unfortunately.. that was a small ship that captured Ben."

He frowned, "So what? You're gonna find that place and just destroy it? What about the ships? Those are too much for all the Plumbers to take down. We're not strong enough to fight them."

"I'm aware of that," He noted, "That's just our problem. We have the equipment and the plan, just not the people to fill in the gaps."

"What about hiring humans? There are some that know of alien presences on earth," Rook volunteered.

Max thought about it slowly. Would that be a major risk? Humans involving themselves in an alien problem? Humans weren't the strongest species and this was no way close to a normal war.. But with enough humans, it could actually combat them..

"Why not?" He finally answered back, relieving the small tension between the partners. "It could work.. I'll get on that, get into human resources and see if we can do anything with them."

"Great," Ben finished, putting his fists on his hips, "Now what?"

"Now, you both connect with each other. You haven't seen each other for two years.. you both should bond more," Max said, eyeing both of them, "If we want to have a strong team to battle those ships, we've got to have a solid bond. Agreed? Go train if you'd like. Just do something together."

Rook nodded and grabbed the boy's arm, dragging him to a nearby training facility, which mainly Rook used privately. The doors slid open and Ben snapped out of his daze. "So.. what do we do?"

He tossed him a standard Plumber gun, "We practice aim. You do know how to operate a standard weapon, correct?"

"Yeah.. of course."

"That does not sound reassuring. Do you acquire some assistance?"

"No, I got it.." Ben aimed the gun toward the targets on the other room and shot, only to be thrown back because of the direction he held it. He clutched his chest with pain and managed to wheeze out, "Actually.. I think I need a little help."

Rook chuckled and helped him up, setting him on a nearby chair. "I had warned you."

"Just need some more practice, I guess," He rubbed his neck.

* * *

_He woke painfully, feeling completely numb on one side of his body. The sleep he had thought would be somewhat peaceful was nothing but opposite. He groaned and clutched his arm, which throbbed uncontrollably. _

_His muscles felt stiff, as if he hadn't used them in months. His brain pulsing with all the information he had collected last night. He was trapped somewhere, where his family couldn't reach him. His omnitrix didn't work and there people just like him trapped as well._

_But he honestly wasn't worried about that at the moment. He was worried about the condition of his hand. It looked honestly scary. The bandage wrapped around his wound, soaked with blood, barely even the color of what it used to be. Red streaks spread around his injury and he could feel it swell. He touched his head gingerly, feeling it burn on contact. _

_Fever? Red lines? Hadn't he read about these symptoms before somewhere?_

_Then his eyes widened. Blood poisoning. He had read about it during his training at the Plumbers Academy.. it could be lethal if left untreated. Oh no._

_Ben pushed himself back, his back pressing against the cold metal cell. He was going to die.. he was going to die._

_Those words kept repeating in his head until he felt himself get dizzy. He was going to die with no word from his family, friends.. anybody. He was going to fade away to nothing.. He was going to die like a pathetic prisoner with nothing left._

_Tears leaked through his eyes and he held the injury tenderly. He probably only had a couple days before the poisoning would spread to the rest of his body and eventually kill him.. He sighed, he should make the best of it. At least he'd get out of here.. right?_

_"Ben T-Tennyson?"_

_His eyes glanced over a small alien, looking at him through the opposite cell. It had greenish scales and small horns on the top of its body. It looked half the height of himself and looked pretty skinny for its species._

_"You got captured too, I see."_

_Ben nodded sadly and glanced down, "Y-Yeah.. how long have you been here?"_

_"Long enough to know about you.. I've been here for a couple years unfortunately. I'd never thought they'd actually go after you," It muttered, shaking its head, "The name's Sudeth."_

_He forced a smile, "It's nice to see something happy in this depressing dump."_

_Sudeth examined for a moment before his eyes widened and pointed a shaky finger at his arm, "Did they.. That was your initiation. Wow.."_

_"Initiation? What do you mean?" He glanced down at his arm._

_"They always do something that cuts deep into the person they kidnapped. I.. They kidnapped my sister.. I had been taking care of her for years.. and they stole me because I apparently had this hidden power.. to control minds and bodies. They killed her.. right in front of me. Then locked me up here like a sick monster. They tried to sell me on many occasions, but failed at the condition I put myself in. They want their victims to be scarred but healthy enough for profit. That's all this ships really for.. profit," He lowered his head, "They steal aliens daily. Whatever's close and well worth money."_

_Ben frowned, "They targeted me for my watch. They.. tried to cut my hand off.. I think I may have blood poisoning too."_

_"Don't worry," He waved that away, "They'll notice it and get you medicine. They don't want their highest profit going down the drain."_

_"Oh," He scratched his neck, "So's how life here? Is it bearable?"_

_Sudeth shrugged, "I guess so. They feed us if we're lucky but if we're injured, they treat us like kings. So at the moment, you might be treated like one since you're pretty beat up. You'll get like 3 course meals and medicine.. if you're hurt that bad."_

_He sighed in relief, "At least they won't leave me to die.."_

_"Yeah, they wouldn't want Ben Tennyson, savior of the Universe to die cause of some stupid blood poisoning. You're to valuable to lose," He said sarcastically with a chuckle._

_Ben laughed along, "Yeah.. I guess I'm kinda lucky. When do they usually find out?"_

_"In a couple hours.. they'll find out. Just relax, you'll be fine."_

* * *

_And true to Sudeth's word, they had arrived, almost startling Ben to death. They had forcibly trapped him down and injected something into him, which was almost painful as yesterday. He groaned in pain, clutching his arm as soon as he was extricated._

_And surprising as he glared at him with hatred, they quickly dropped off a large silver platter and left._

_He glanced at it with curiosity, half knowing what was awaiting inside. His cautious fingers slowly opened up the lid and grinned when he saw delicious food inside. It was chili fries and smoothies, which surprising half creeped him out and half enjoyed._

_He picked up the dish carefully and sniffed, making sure there weren't any dangerous chemicals he could detect around it. Deciding it was okay, he plucked off a fry and carefully bit into it._

_It wasn't the best as earth made, but it was close enough to prison food. He hadn't eaten in days and any food he could get would be good enough for him. The chili fries were finished in seconds and soon after were the smoothies._

_His stomach felt satisfied and he felt refreshed.. energized. He soon had noticed that his arm wasn't throbbing anymore.. no.. his hand felt.. better! He forced himself to wiggle his fingers and surprisingly it did just that. He had control of his arm again.. to an extent. They still needed to heal all the way._

_But at least he felt better. Not like this morning with all the pain nearly consuming his every being._

_He pushed his body against the wall and leaned back, exhaling heavily._

_"I'm assuming they did what I said they would," A voice chuckled._

_Ben's eyes opened and he shrugged, "At least I don't have to feel the pain anymore.. but.. I'm still scarred by what they did."_

_Sudeth shrugged, "It's better than the agony they put you through if you deny the medicine. They usually.. throw you into a pit of fire while you're still alive. It's not that good to hear.. you would be surprised at how many people can't accept it."_

_He shivered, "I don't wanna find out."_

_"You know everyone's scarred by what happened. You don't need to think you're alone in this. Everyone can relate to you; we've all been used to the limit by them," He reminded sadly, with a slight shake of his head. "But you're with family."_

_He nodded solemnly, "I know. Thanks for everything."_

_And with that he went back to sulking, one of the things he had been doing too much recently._


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: Downfall**

_Another round of whips stung his backside and hot tears began to fall freely from his cheeks. He felt his confidence of escaping growing weaker and weaker and he felt utterly dead. His family hadn't rescued him yet.. what was taking so long?_

_He didn't have time to ponder it, when another slash burned his spine. He clenched his teeth and held onto himself desperately, trying to at least protect himself from the wave of pain._

_"Would you like to back talk again? Huh, Tennyson?" The guard asked with a chuckle, whipping him hard for emphasis. "Go ahead try. I'm ready."_

_Ben just ignored the man's threats and focused on himself._

_The beatings had began to get more frequent and frequent, probably because of him back talking every guard he saw. He always shot smart remarks at them and they rushed to him, beating the life out of him. He had gotten used to it for a while.. but unfortunately it wasn't long enough._

_It would take weeks to recover from incidents like this.. but he would never actually have an opportunity to heal, since he would talk back again in a matter of days. It had been like this for weeks.._

_He had been getting sad glances in his direction, some saying it wasn't worth it, and some saying please just rethink what you're doing. But he always ignored them and continued on with his strategy. _

_Ben's fists tightened as the last round finished and the guard huffed, "You're no more fun. Don't worry, I'll be here tomorrow, waiting for you."_

_The door shut behind him but Ben didn't bother to check and see if he was gone. He didn't have the energy anyway. It had been depleted when he had been screaming his throat out during his beating. He couldn't even think about what he had done to deserve this.._

_And he wasn't even sure why he kept on doing it. It wasn't like he was going to get healed by doing this. This was one of the things the ship refused to help in. Heal prisoners whom tried to talk back._

_And the direction he was taking by doing that was making his condition worse and worse. He wasn't sure if he could keep up with this anymore. But he always fought back; maybe it was cause he was Ben Tennyson, who didn't bow down to any force in the universe no matter what the situation or probably it was the last thing keeping him sane from being trapped here._

_He felt tears fall down his cheeks and he found the energy to wipe them away. The prisoners didn't need to see him crying over a petty beating.._

_His hands clenched his hair tightly when he began to feel the effects of throbbing all over his body. Hissing in pain, his eyes tightened and he felt himself shake uncontrollably._

_Not again._

_The seizures.. they had began happening frequently after his first couple of beatings.. he wasn't even sure how long he had been trapped here anymore. He had lost most of his sanity, most of his time spent here was sleeping._

_He felt his muscles throb painfully and he just laid there, taking it all. He felt himself choke on his breaths and began to feel light-headed._

_And the funny thing about this was that he had gone through the same procedure everyday; he had thought he would get used to this.. unfortunately not. He couldn't stand the seizures anymore.. he swore he had a concussion by Day 2._

_And finally it ended. He felt himself relax and soften, the pain vanishing as if it hadn't happened._

_His breathing turned regular and he felt himself take a strong breath of air. _

_'Day whatever finished.. now onto the next day,' he thought with sadness._

* * *

"What's wrong with him?" Max asked.

Rook shrugged with agitation printed on his face, "I do not know! I was training with him and he just fainted out of nowhere. I called the medics as soon as I could. Could it have to do with the ship?"

"Impossible. We took it down. The only thing he should be feeling is something in his body from an after effect of the ship," He summed up with a frown. He tapped his chin with worry, "But what would he be feeling?"

"Maybe he has injured a part of his body?" He suggested.

Max shook his head, "I don't think so. That would of picked up on the bio-scans. Maybe it's something in his system.."

"Or it could be a previous concussion coming back," Driba interrupted along side with Blukic.

"Or a new concussion forming."

"Is not!"

"Is too!" They argued.

Rook's face dropped, "I suggest you two stop arguing. What can you tell us about it?"

Driba glanced over to his friend and frowned, turning back to Rook, "It's a previous concussion from where he was kidnapped. It actually isn't a new concussion, just one that hasn't fully healed. We've scanned his brain and found many hits to the skull, which are severely cracked in some areas. He's reacting like this because once again he's been hit or shaken violently that's started the injury again."

"What should we do?" Max asked.

"Nothing. We just need Ben to rest before we do anything drastic. I suggest we try surgery later on to fix his skull. There are many fractures that are troublesome to his health," He answered back.

"Very well then. Where is he now?" Rook glanced over to the Galvins.

"In the infirmary. He should be awake in a couple hours."

"Thank you both," Max smiled thankfully and turned to the Revonnahgander. "You go back to training. Afterwards you can visit him. Understood?"

"Understood sir."

Rook's motionless body walked down the hallway, towards the previous training center he was literally in 20 minutes ago with Ben. He felt stupid; how could he not think of Ben getting hurt at such a fragile stage of development.

He should have taken Ben's wheezing as a sign.. but no! He had just continued to allow the boy to shoot around with a weapon, as if everything was fine. It was thanks to him that Ben was hurt..

He spent the time alone in a private area to shoot. He still sensed many people pass behind him, glancing with worry at how exact Rook aimed at the targets. He never missed. He never shot anywhere other than the middle of the target's head. He always shot right through them. His eyes never left the targets.

"Rook?"

He paused and glanced over his shoulder at his fellow Plumber. He had nearly forgotten his friend's name, partially being so entranced in the targets and thoughts.

"Hello Adam. What do you need?"

"Nothing.. I was just wondering about you. You don't look well. I suggest you rest," He said cautiously, as if the Revonnahgander would break in an instant.

He frowned and clenched his Proto-Tool tightly. "I do not need to rest. I am perfectly fine. Now if you would leave me be, I would like to get back to my training."

This time a hand was placed on his weapon and was forcibly pushed back. "I don't want to fight you Rook. But if I have too, I will. Now I suggest you stop or I'll do something rash."

"Do not touch me," He hissed aiming his Proto-Tool at the Plumber.

Adam backed up, tripping on his foot and falling onto his butt. He put up his hands in defense, "You wouldn't dare!"

"Try me. Now leave me alone."

"Not until you explain what's wrong!" He argued, jumping from his spot and behind his back. He kicked his legs and pinned him down as soon as he saw Rook had fallen. "What has gotten you like this?"

"Leave me alone!"

"Enough!"

Rook felt the hands wrapped around his wrists disappear and he got to his feet, dusting himself off with anger. When he looked up, he found Magister Tennyson in fury. "Rook a word. And Adam, I don't want you to do that again. Understand?"

"Yes sir," Adam mumbled and turned away, giving one last angered glance in his direction.

"What was that about?" Max asked, interrupting his thoughts.

"Nothing," Rook turned away, making a move to depart.

A fat hand grabbed his shoulder and forced him to look back. "Don't you nothing me. This isn't you. If you don't tell me right now, we're going to have a serious problem."

He crossed his arms, "It's about Ben."

"What about him?" Max furthered.

He sighed, "I was the one that caused him to get hurt. We were training and I allowed him to wield a weapon to shoot a couple targets. I should have discontinued training right after that first blast. Ben began wheezing after every shot he took. The blaster was too strong for him to handle and repeatedly hit him in the chest. I apologize for my reckless behavior."

"Rook, it's alright."

He glanced over at him, "Magister, I respect you with all my knowledge but I do not believe you. It was my fault; I allowed Ben to continue to get hurt."

"It's not like you knew about it. It's been a long couple a years without Ben. We've just got to get used to this Ben before he returns to normal. Just give him time. He'll be alright soon enough," Max promised softly, patting his back, "You'll get your old partner back. I promise."

"I just wish everything would return to normal," Rook sighed sadly. "I miss just 'hanging out' with my partner."

"Give him time. Just give him time to rest up and heal back into a hero. He'll be back to normal eventually," He promised with an encouraging smile.

"I wish I could believe you. But what happened in that ship greatly traumatized him. He will not be the same.. not after those 2 years of isolation," The Revonnahgander mumbled before turning back to his Proto-Tool which had fallen during his fight with Adam. He began to aim at the targets when a hand came down on the base of his gun.

"Rook, I promise you, you'll get Ben back to normal. You've just got to help him adjust back into our Ben okay? He trusts you and I know you believe in him. Just do your best and help him out or he'll stay like that forever," Max finished and removed his hand. "I'll leave you to your training. By the way, Ben's been moved to a medical room in our infirmary. He'll be under watch.. And the doctors told me he'll be alright."

He didn't answer him and began to shoot, trying to drown all his thoughts with the ringing of his Proto-Tool. He wanted to forget what he had failed to stop. He wasn't able to protect his own partners those two years ago. He had failed the Plumbers, himself and most importantly, Ben.

He shot the targets with crazy accuracy, shooting each directly in the forehead, never faltering once.

It was until most of the Plumbers started to leave, did he notice that he had enough for today. Packing up his Proto-Tool, he strolled out of the door and into the hallway. It was empty for the most part, which relieved Rook; he didn't want to talk to anyone on his way to the medic center.

When he entered the bay, he smelled the rotten scent of sterilizers and sweat. The center was filled with people, mostly because they got people from far away missions who were sent to do something somewhere else. Plumbers came in more than they departed, many injuries being deadly.

But he found Ben's room quickly, mostly because his name was printed on a board with a black marker. He knocked softly before entering.

The first thing he noticed was the darkness filling the room. There was a small light on the wall but it wasn't strong enough for him to fully see everything. He could see a dark shape on the bed, which was breathing at a steady rate. On further inspection, it was the face of his partner, who clearly had ice wrapped around his head and many bandages holding it in place. He looked perfectly fine, if it wasn't for that.

Rook sighed in relief that it wasn't much worse and sat down on a nearby chair, pulling it closer to his injured friend. For the longest time, he studied Ben with sadness but with relief. Ben was going to be alright for now.. maybe Max was right after all.

"Blonko?" He turned to be met with a nurse. He shook himself from his heavy daze and rubbed his eye, "Visiting hours are over. Go to your room and get some sleep."

Not wanting to leave his partner alone for the night, he shook his head, "Would it be alright if I stayed here? I would like to talk to Ben when he wakes up."

She frowned for a second before she noticed Rook's sincere expression. She knew what had occurred years ago and she was aware of his recent arrival to the facility. He was completely trustworthy, which he had shown everyone those last couple of years. Maybe she could let this slide once..

"Fine," She sighed but eyed Ben, "But I don't want anyone else in here. I'll cover for you."

"Thank you," He smiled gratefully and went back to staring at Ben's sleeping form.

The nurse stared at the scene with aspiration. Maybe something good would come out of this eventually.. they just need the right push in the right direction. She slipped out of the room and softly closed the door on her way out.

* * *

Darkness was the only thing he could see as Ben regained his senses. His body was groggy and his head pounded in pain. He lifted himself up and rubbed his eyes, trying to clear his vision successfully.

The first thing he noticed was a large blue lump on the corner of his bedside. By the shape and color, he easily identified it as Rook, who appeared in a deep sleep. The clock read 6:17 am so that gave him the chance to try and sit up against the pillows supporting his head. He groaned and touched his head gingerly, hissing at the pain jolting through his system.

"Ben?" A voice whispered.

He glanced down at Rook's awakening eyes and he grinned, "Hey dude. Wuddup?"

"Do not 'wuddup' me. You are in here because of me," He muttered, shaking his head and pushing himself off the bed. "I should have forced you to stop after that first hit."

"Rook.. I'm not made of stones. You don't know what I've seen in there. I've been through way worse.. and it was in there. You don't need to be worried about me. I'm perfectly fine. Just stop," Ben frowned, crossing his arms.

"I just cannot forgive myself."

Ben lifted himself off the bed, trying to leave and avoid Rook's depression. He couldn't stand to see his ex-partner like this, even though it wasn't either of their faults.

Through the thick pain throbbing in his skull, he managed to pull out the couple of IVs attached in his arm and stand up from the bed. Rook somehow didn't notice what he was trying to do beside him and that allowed Ben to hold onto the bed tightly and slowly walk over to him.

"R-Rook," He said, hissing when pain flashed through his eyes.

The periwinkle colored alien gasped in fright at his walking partner and rushed to his side in safety. "Ben, you must not be up! It will be bad for your recovery."

Ben gave him a look, "Does it look like I care..?"

"Not much. But please listen to me. You should not be up."

"I'm fine. This is what you get for blaming yourself. Now stop or else I'm going to pass out because of you," He whispered before his knees gave out and he collapsed. Rook luckily caught him in time, and shook his head sadly at Ben's ignorance. He set him back into bed and inserted the removed IVs before leaving the room, a sad smile on his face.

* * *

_"You need to be hanging with your friends. You can't go hero everyday," Gwen giggled and lightly punched her cousin on the shoulder. This resulted in a small fight between them and ended with Ben sitting on top of her with an evil grin._

_"Says the one on the floor," He commented with a smirk. "You can't tell me what to do. Plus it's the right thing to do. Sacrifice my free time to help people in need."_

_"It's going to be the end of you," She rolled her eyes, pushing her cousin off her body. She grunted and sighed in relief as soon as his heavy body fell the other way. "You need to worry about yourself too."_

_Ben shrugged and dusted himself off, "I don't matter. Others do. I'll do anything to protect innocent people. You know that."_

_"Just wish you would forget it," He muttered, crossing his arms._

_"I just don't want you to over extend yourself. I don't want you to get hurt," Gwen smiled, giving a kiss on his forehead. "Promise me that you'll be careful, okay?"_

_He sat for a moment considering that before grinning goofy, and nodding. "Promise."_

To bad he had broken that promise days after. Gwen still couldn't get over that he had been kidnapped against his will and kept like an animal. She couldn't have done anything.. nobody could have. Ben had been on his own for years.. like a shell of himself that had been kept like a slave.

When Grandpa Max had told her that Ben had a concussion from being there, she had nearly cried in his arms.

Her cousin was so.. so broken up.. so different. He wasn't invincible as she always suspected he would be. He _could_ be hurt. He _could_ be kidnapped. He _could_ be weak. He wasn't always going to be with the omnitrix, she knew, but.. Ben seemed never to get into any dangerous trouble.

Until now.

Her small feet traveled up the hallways into a unfamiliar location, she had only found by the signs outside. This was where he was staying for the meantime. She just hoped he wasn't getting into any trouble.

She strolled to the front desk and tapped on the smooth wooden material, "I'm looking for Benjamin Tennyson."

The lady at the desk gave a look of boredom and pointed at a random door with her pen, looking down at her magazine. "Room 32. My guess that he's asleep; the doctor gave him some meds."

She didn't bother to thank the lady, partially because she had already began to read her magazine as soon as she was finished. Taking her route, she opened the door to Ben's room carefully and shut it behind her.

Just as the lady had said, he was sound asleep, snoring loudly. There was a bottle of medication beside a half drunken glass of water on the table. His head was wrapped with alot of gauze and she noticed the IVs on his omnitrix arm, the source a clear liquid.

The room was completely empty except for herself and Ben, which was perfect enough for her. Pulling up a chair beside her cousin, she watched his steady breathing.

She wasn't honestly sure how long she had stayed there, except when she felt the gentle tapping on her skull, she groaned and rubbed the sleep out of her eyes. Her head rose from its previous position and watched as a grinning green eyed face appear.

"Good morning sleepy head.. well that would be wrong since it's not morning..," Ben paused and shrugged, "Whatever, I'm going with that."

"Huh?" She managed to mumble before stretching her stiff muscles out.

"What with everyone trying to sneak into here and watch me sleep? Rook did it, now you?" He concluded with a shake of his head. "Please don't tell me you're going to do this often."

Gwen rolled her eyes, "Don't count on it. I just wanted to check up on my favorite cousin."

"Did Grandpa set you up to this?" He said suspiciously, narrowing his eyes.

She put her hands out defensively, "Jeez, calm down Ben. I just wanted to visit you. You've been through alot."

"Yeah.. I know," He sighed, scratching his head, "It's pretty hectic after all this stuff. I just wanna get out of here and go home."

"Just heal up and you'll be home in no time. Promise," Gwen ruffled up Ben's hair. "Now do you want anything for dinner? Grandpa asked the doctor about giving you some fatty foods like burgers. You up?"

He frowned, "Does that mean I have to stay here and you go out and buy them for us?"

"No.." She teased lightly, "It means, that I get to take you out for dinner at the Burger Shack. You just gotta promise to be extra careful with your head and to take the meds I ask. Okay?"

Ben grinned, "Gwen, have I ever told you I loved you so much?"

"Nope."

"Well then, I should start saying it more often."

* * *

_"Prisoners, please be dressed appropriately. Repeat, please be dressed appropriately or punishments will be severe."_

_Ben whimpered at the voice around him but he reluctantly got up and did as he was told. He changed into the new clothes he was given, which was standard for every prisoner like him. A grey shirt and black pants. They looked nicer than his regular clothes, which had been ripped up during those depressing weeks. He only had his cargo pants that seemed a little undamaged and his shirt was already beyond repair._

_Before he had put on his new grey shirt, he examined his scared body. Around his check, because of the collar they had updated, and around his chest and back, which had been from the whips. The tortures.. he had stopped back-talking to the guards, probably because of the immense amount of pain he was enduring. He couldn't handle whips anymore, he needed a break._

_And everyone had noticed the lack of hope Ben had started to give. He wasn't fighting anymore. He wasn't arguing. He wasn't doing anything._

_That's when their spirits had began to diminish as well. No hero to cheer, no hope to build.  
_

_As soon as he was done, he sat on his bunk for the longest time, waiting for the guards to take him to the secure location everyone was meeting in. He wasn't even sure what it was about anyway. It's not like they were important enough to be informed of._

_"Cells will be opening momentarily. Do not try anything or severe punishments will await you. Repeat, Do not try anything," The intercom spoke before shutting off. And true to it's word, the doors slid open, a guard waiting outside._

_"Come Tennyson," The guard said, before roughly grabbing his arm and dragging him out._

_Ben stumbled on his feet but regained his balance and didn't bother to glance over at the guard for permission to go. He could feel him behind, knowing he was pointing the weapon right at his back if he did anything wrong. He swallowed hard and stared straight ahead._

_He could see, out of the corner of his eye, the other prisoners that were doing the exact same thing. They stood straight, looked nicer than usual and walked straight like himself. He hadn't been out of the cell for a while but he saw others, he had never seen before. There was a large male with small little kids behind him; probably his children. They looked about 7-8 years old but looked used to this._

_He shook his head mentally. What kind of sick people would steal children and bring them to this mental place? It wasn't right! But before he could think anymore, a barrel stabbed him in the rib._

_"Get going! We don't have all day," The guard muttered, shoving him again._

_Ben did as he was told and continued to walk and walk, not bothering to think anymore. He couldn't get into anymore trouble. He could take that much anymore._

_He wasn't sure how he found his way, but he did, arriving in the large hall. It was pretty huge but it wasn't very appealing. It was grey and depressing; just like the cells. They had plastic chairs lined up neatly and half of it was already full. He joined the large group in the corner and found a seat for himself, tightening himself so that he was far away as possible from the others._

_"Ben Tennyson?" He looked up to an eldish old man, who seemed about 50ish. There were large bags underneath his eyes and he seemed like he hadn't slept in years. "I had heard rumors but I hadn't suspected they were true."_

_Ben managed a half-hearted laugh, "Yeah, they caught me."_

_"I can see. How.. how's living here suiting you? How long have you been captured?" The man frowned, shaking his head._

_"It's terrible," He started with a sigh, "They pretty much beat me everyday for talking back. I got captured a couple months ago.. What about you?"_

_He chuckled, "Years. I lost count after 3 years.. They tend to do that when you disobey them. You shouldn't do that."_

_"Yeah, I stopped a couple days ago," Ben shrugged._

_A large microphone sound echoed the room and the man jolted back into a straight position, "Be quiet. They're about to talk."_

_He decided not to ask him again and glanced straight forward at a new group of people arriving on stage. They wore business suits and looked pretty tall than an average human. One of them, probably the leader, had his hair combed back with a dark look staring out into the crowd._

_"Hello," He yelled out, his voice deep and darkish._

_The crowd around him mumbled a hello back but nobody looked away from the men. Ben shuddered lightly at how.. dead the crowd seemed but he glanced back to the stage._

_"Nice couple of slaves you got here," The man turned around and mumbled to a coworker. The guy said something in response that amused him and he turned back with a large grin. "Now you all must be wondering why we are here and that is a very simple question: We are here to buy you."_

_The body of prisoners remained silent._

_"That may seem pretty normal and you may be thinking, 'why go through all this trouble?' Well we want the best slaves for this expedition. This will be a top notch mission that must be carried out by only the best and fittest prisoners. And in the end, you may regain your freedom," The man finished, scanning the crowd._

_Ben soaked this in slowly. He could escape if he joined them! That meant he could go back with his family and friends back on earth. He could be free again. And it would only take a single mission. Nothing could be as hard as defeating Vilgax or the DNAliens.. Right?_

_"We'll be here for a couple of days, inspecting for only the finest slaves. So you better do your best and impress us," The man chuckled darkly before turning to Magent, who had just appeared. The man looked better than Ben remembered, probably because he had been a bloody mess during the last time he had seen him._

_"And you better not think this is a way to just escape without my notice. If you try, you will be severely punished," He scanned the crowd with his dark eyes._

_And out of nowhere a beep was heard below him. Ben glanced down and found the omnitrix symbol green and active. 'What?' He thought speechless before lightly brushing the button. He hadn't turned into an alien into months.. what.. what was finally working? Was someone going to rescue him?_

_He spun the dial, activating the watch for use. He glanced up at Magent who continued to look around and he took this time to slam down on the watch. He felt himself mutate and change, being something entirely different. He hadn't done anything like this for months.. it was good to finally experience this again. But now wasn't the time to be happy. He needed to get past everything.. especially the guards._

_And once he opened his eyes, he found himself flying and cold where ever he went. Big Chill. He could work with this._

_"Who is that?" Someone yelled out and he recognized it as Magent. Great._

_"Benjamin Tennyson, sir."_

_"Shoot him down. He's going to get something worse from me."_

_He felt shots whiz past him and he dodged thankfully. Another round appeared and he went intangible but to his astonishment, he was blasted in the chest and brought down. He groaned in pain and was then electrocuted by a pair of nearby guards. He screamed in pain and changed back, dropping like a weight onto the floor._

_"Get up boy," A kick to his stomach pushed him out of his rest. __He got up slowly and glanced up at the angered face of Magent. "You have alot of nerve boy to ruin a good deal such as this." More round of kicks around his body._

_"Who is this?" The man on the stage asked with a frown. He hovered over Ben's fallen body like a predator._

_"Benjamin Kirby Tennyson, wielder of the omnitrix. He's a new recruit to these parts. He's been uncooperative in the last couple of months however, and this is his last time doing so," Magent muttered. "Guards, take him to my place. He needs to have a little talk with."_

_A couple of guards grabbed cuffs and tied Ben's wrists, harshly dragging him along with them. _

_"Now don't be too hasty. The poor kid's only learning. I'm sure there's another punishment we can get through his thick skull," The man volunteered. The guards paused for a second, glancing at their boss._

_"But Gagren, you don't understand this boy. He's-"_

_"I'm aware of the greatest hero in the galaxy. I have heard of his accomplishments, but that doesn't mean he'll be let off easy. You'll still punish him."_

_Magent frowned, "Then what do you suggest?"_

_"I suggest that we show him what happens if he tries to go against us again. Bring along his family, what're they called? The Tennysons'? Bring that precious cousin he loves so much. Gwendolyn correct," He glanced over at Ben's stricken face. "Surely that must be an acceptable punishment. Watch them suffer and he'll suffer."_

_"That sounds.. like a wonderful idea," The boss grinned evilly. "I'll have my guards fetch them immediately."_

_"No!" Ben managed to scream, pulling against the guards' grip. "Please don't hurt any of them! Please! I'll be obedient. I'll do whatever you say, just please don't hurt them, I beg of you."_

_Gagren glanced over to his friend, "See what I mean? Hurt his family and he'll be broken forever. Now what was your side of the punishment?"_

_"I was thinkin-"  
_

_"You aren't going to hurt them right?" Ben interrupted, looking with fear at the two large men in front of him. "Please don-"_

_The nicely suited man backhanded the teen before he could finish. Ben could feel the numbing pain on half his face and if he was able to, he would of touched it. He stared mouth agaped at the man and took a step back._

_"Don't interrupt slave," He hissed menacingly. "Interrupting your master shows no discipline and rudeness. Now apologize to him at once."  
_

_Ben glanced over at Magent, who was grinning from ear to ear. He seemed to be more than enjoying this. This was like pleasure to him. A slave apologizing?; too great._

_"I'm sorry."_

_Silence and.._

_"You haven't finished it."_

_"Huh?" Ben glanced over at Gagren, who tapped his foot impatiently._

_The man frowned, "You forgot Master, slave. Don't make me beat it out of you."_

_"I'm sorry M-Master."_

_Gagren smirked, "I didn't ask for a stutter boy," He grabbed Ben's neck and tightened his grip on him against the wall, "You trying to disobey me? This calls for a beating."_

_Green eyes widened, "B-But please! I.. I did as you asked, please!"_

_The man flipped Ben behind him and punched him with his fist, "Did I ask for you to show mercy? You slaves need to understand one thing. If we ask for you to plead for mercy, then you better do it. If not, then don't." More punches and cries of pain filled the room and the other prisoners winced at how it was playing out. Ben Tennyson, the hero of many galaxies was being beaten like a dead animal. There was nothing they could do, unless they wanted a beating for themselves. They're hero was defenseless._

_When Gagren finished, his fist was covered in a small layer of blood and he had sweat all over his body. Ben on the other hand, didn't look to well. His face was completely swollen and his eye was shut tight because of that. The corner of his mouth had a trail of running blood and he remained unmoving on the ground._

_The man wiped off his hands on his suit. "That teaches him to talk back. Now, I think our meeting his dismissed. They've gotten the message."_

_The guards immedately collected the prisoner they were assigned too and began moving out. Ben's guard stood beside him and glanced over to Magent, "What do I do now sir?"_

_"Collect him and dispose of him in his cell. He gets no food for the next couple of days and if he tries anything, alert me. I'll deal with him personally," He narrowed his eyes and spun around, not bothering to give the injured boy a second glance._

_And in about 10 minutes, Ben was thrown back into his room, literally. He laid on the floor like a helpless animal. He was aware of his surroundings but he couldn't move a muscle; his body was on fire. He could only think about what mistakes he had done that had cost him this. Everyone had saw what he had tried to do; they probably thought he was just like them, a person desperate to escape but failed every single time._

_It was pointless to try anymore. It was a waste of energy and of his mental being. He just needed to be strong for a little while longer, maybe something would come and rescue him from this place. But he couldn't cause anymore trouble or it would lead into worse things._

_The pain around his body became unbearable as he lost consciousness and everything faded into black._


End file.
